“Besides, haven’t you always wanted kids? I just brought home two. Shouldn’t you be happy? And they’re both boys—plenty of people can’t even manage that.”
“This is the painless way to become a dad! Shouldn’t you be thanking me?”
With that, I pulled the two boys forward.
“Go on, call him Dad. Call her Grandma.”
“Daddy! Grandma!” their young voices rang out again and again. I didn’t stop them, so they kept calling.
Ethan and Mrs. Walker’s faces turned green.
Ethan coughed furiously from anger.
Even the onlookers, who had never seen such a scene, stood stunned.
My parents couldn’t take it anymore. Each of them clapped a hand over one child’s mouth to stop them.
My mother, who always loved me most, shook her head in disappointment.
“Melissa, you and Ethan are both only children. When you two decided to stay child-free, neither I nor Mrs. Walker understood, but we respected it. Even though we never got grandkids, seeing you happy was enough for us.”
“But if you wanted kids after all, why not talk it over with Ethan? What you’ve done now—you’ve disgraced us completely. Do you realize how many people will laugh at us? How could you be so foolish?”
Beside her, my father’s face darkened.